We start chapter four with Scout telling us the rest of her school year was grim and disappointing. Her days were no more favorable than that of her first day at school. She was forced to endure a school term that progresses too slowly for her, thus she is constantly disappointed at the level of the class. However one day she notices tinfoil protruding from a knothole in a tree on the Radley’s fence. Out of curiosity she walks over and reaches for the tinfoil. In it she discovers 2 pieces of gum. Ecstatic she chews both and returns home to tell Jem about her discovery. Jem disapproves of Scouts actions and forces her to spit it out. On the last day of their school terms the two find two Indian-heads (pennies) inside the knot-hole where scout had previously found her gum in. They decide to keep the pennies for now and return them later when possible. As summer starts up, their friend Dill returns to Maycomb. They resume their ‘plays’ once more, this time their story portraits Boo Radley’s life. They edit the story daily to refine it as much as possible. However as time progresses they start to become suspicious that they are being noticed when acting out their play. After being caught by Atticus one day Scout is worried that he knows too much and decides to finalize the play.
Setting:
Chapter four’s setting revolves around the Finch’s backyard and the Radley’s garden. In the chapter the children spend their time playing in their garden, or going too look on the Radley’s fence for hidden treasures. The Town is called Maycomb County, Alabama, and the book is set in the 1930’s.
Character Descriptions:
Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose: Described as the “meanest woman to have ever lived”. The children would not walk by her house unaccompanied by an adult, out of fright of the old woman.
Calpurnia: Calpurnia is the cook and maid for the Finch’s; she has been with them since the children were born. She acts a lot like a mother to the children. Jem and Scout are terrified of Cal, so they avoid getting into mischief with her around.
Atticus: Father of Jem and Scout. Atticus works as a lawyer for the town. When he is not at his office he is at home with his children, teaching them to read, and giving them life lessons. He is a very good father and cares deeply for his children.
Jeremy Finch: Jem is Scout’s older brother, so he is very protective of her and feels he has to teach her between right and wrong. He a very strong-minded boy who doesn’t like to be proven wrong or embarrassed. He is brave and when he has a plan in mind he sticks to it.
Scout: Jean Louise is the narrator of the book; she is a six-year-old tomboy girl, who much prefers being with boys then girls. She is extremely wise for her age and very rational. Yet she is still young and gets in trouble with her brother often.
Boo Radley: He is one of the Finch’s next-door neighbors. It is rumored in Maycomb County that Boo stabbed his father with scissors, because he has become crazy from being locked up in his parent’s house.
Vocabulary:
Auspicious: Favorable, favored
Dewey Decimal System: a proprietary system of library classification developed by Melvil Dewey
Unanimous: two or more people who are fully in agreement
Scuppernongs: Green grapes native to the southern half of North America
Melancholy: Sad, gloomy or depressed
Whittled: Carve (wood) into an object by repeatedly cutting small slices from it
Mortifying: Cause someone to feel ashamed, embarrass or humiliated
Plot summary:
We start chapter four with Scout telling us the rest of her school year was grim and disappointing. Her days were no more favorable than that of her first day at school. She was forced to endure a school term that progresses too slowly for her, thus she is constantly disappointed at the level of the class.
However one day she notices tinfoil protruding from a knothole in a tree on the Radley’s fence. Out of curiosity she walks over and reaches for the tinfoil. In it she discovers 2 pieces of gum. Ecstatic she chews both and returns home to tell Jem about her discovery. Jem disapproves of Scouts actions and forces her to spit it out. On the last day of their school terms the two find two Indian-heads (pennies) inside the knot-hole where scout had previously found her gum in. They decide to keep the pennies for now and return them later when possible.
As summer starts up, their friend Dill returns to Maycomb. They resume their ‘plays’ once more, this time their story portraits Boo Radley’s life. They edit the story daily to refine it as much as possible. However as time progresses they start to become suspicious that they are being noticed when acting out their play. After being caught by Atticus one day Scout is worried that he knows too much and decides to finalize the play.
Setting:
Chapter four’s setting revolves around the Finch’s backyard and the Radley’s garden. In the chapter the children spend their time playing in their garden, or going too look on the Radley’s fence for hidden treasures. The Town is called Maycomb County, Alabama, and the book is set in the 1930’s.
Character Descriptions:
Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose: Described as the “meanest woman to have ever lived”. The children would not walk by her house unaccompanied by an adult, out of fright of the old woman.
Calpurnia: Calpurnia is the cook and maid for the Finch’s; she has been with them since the children were born. She acts a lot like a mother to the children. Jem and Scout are terrified of Cal, so they avoid getting into mischief with her around.
Atticus: Father of Jem and Scout. Atticus works as a lawyer for the town. When he is not at his office he is at home with his children, teaching them to read, and giving them life lessons. He is a very good father and cares deeply for his children.
Jeremy Finch: Jem is Scout’s older brother, so he is very protective of her and feels he has to teach her between right and wrong. He a very strong-minded boy who doesn’t like to be proven wrong or embarrassed. He is brave and when he has a plan in mind he sticks to it.
Scout: Jean Louise is the narrator of the book; she is a six-year-old tomboy girl, who much prefers being with boys then girls. She is extremely wise for her age and very rational. Yet she is still young and gets in trouble with her brother often.
Boo Radley: He is one of the Finch’s next-door neighbors. It is rumored in Maycomb County that Boo stabbed his father with scissors, because he has become crazy from being locked up in his parent’s house.
Vocabulary:
Auspicious: Favorable, favored
Dewey Decimal System: a proprietary system of library classification developed by Melvil Dewey
Unanimous: two or more people who are fully in agreement
Scuppernongs: Green grapes native to the southern half of North America
Melancholy: Sad, gloomy or depressed
Whittled: Carve (wood) into an object by repeatedly cutting small slices from it
Mortifying: Cause someone to feel ashamed, embarrass or humiliated
Quelling: To force down; suppress
PHOTO BANK
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